The Fender American Deluxe J-bass is built with an alder body-a hard wood that provides clear tone and lasting sustain. The maple neck with modern C-shape, Posiflex graphite neck support rods, 5-bolt neck plate, and contoured heel make the instrument extremely easy to play. The High-Mass Vintage bass bridge offers compressed and focused bass tone, with more mid range punch. It retains the Fender articulation and sparkle, combined with vintage-style saddles to maintain a classic vibe. The combination of a steel plate with brass saddles produces the best possible Fender Bass sound.

Pairing up these pickups with the Deluxe Jazz Bass' EQ and volume controls provides that notorious Fender Jazz bass sound that has mystified some of the world's most prominent bassists for decades.

I have been playing bass for the last 11 years and have played and recorded with several good basses. I typically play a Fender American Standard Precision Bass and was looking to add something...Read complete review

I have been playing bass for the last 11 years and have played and recorded with several good basses. I typically play a Fender American Standard Precision Bass and was looking to add something more to my sound. I considered the G&L L2000, which is undeniably a great bass, I also considered a high end Ibanez and a MusicMan, also good basses. But after playing this Fender American Deluxe Jazz bass, the deal was sealed. The active and passive electronics give me flexibility and solid tones that I can dial up in seconds flat. I now have the distinctly different sound that I wanted apart from the P bass. In just a few weeks this Jazz bass has become my primary bass. The P bass has become my Drop D bass. I grab it between songs for the Drop D stuff and use the Jazz bass for the bulk of our current set. I run it through my Peavey Tour VB 2, pre-amped with my Fender 400, while the sound gets pumped out through my Peavey 2x15 and Fender 4x10 cabs. I can get deep bottom rumble, growl, slap, country and funk out of this bass with very little adjustment at the amp. As for playability, this bass was built for the stage. The feel is surprisingly light, balanced, and the neck is thin enough even for my small-ish hands. Stretching between frets is not a problem. Even my P bass makes me stretch a little too far for the frets, but not this Jazz bass. It is simply a joy to play. My hands and fingers are not worn out after a session or a show. You can play this bass for hours. I am not a wealthy musician and I am not a rep for any manufacturer. I'm not a Fender purist and I don't believe Fender makes the only good bass out there. There are many good basses, and if you have money falling out of your pockets you can buy them. But if you have to budget for a good bass like I do, the Fender American Deluxe Jazz Bass should be on your radar. Go play one and try it out. I don't think you will be disappointed with it.

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Fender Deluxe Jazz bass

I can't beleive Fender skipped out on sheilding the control cavity. This is an expense bass and it's unusable because of the excessive noise from pickups. Had to return the bass. I wasn't...Read complete review

I can't beleive Fender skipped out on sheilding the control cavity. This is an expense bass and it's unusable because of the excessive noise from pickups. Had to return the bass. I wasn't willing to put More money into the bass to make it quite.

I can't beleive Fender skipped out on sheilding the control cavity. This is an expense bass and it's unusable because of the excessive noise from pickups. Had to return the bass. I wasn't willing to put More money into the bass to make it quite.

Beautiful finish and setup right out of the case. I have mainly played on the passive side of the electronics and it sounds just like a Jazz Bass should. I haven't noticed any pickup noise but haven't played out through a PA system yet. Very happy with all aspects of this bass.

Amazing bass.really happy with this! exceptional tone that can be modified a lot on the bass itself on the tone/volume knobs and active/passive tone is sweet!!! it really is the best bass in the modern world today. I recommend, even if you need to save up like i had to. Killer sound i promise.

sadly, i have a big dent from another guitar hitting into it which i am still really annoyed about to this day, but the finish is really good!!! There's nothing to complain about, its that good. Try one out at your local music shop (if they have one) if you don't believe me. You will be impressed.

I got mine (a 2011 model) used off of the Talkbass classifieds a few weeks ago. It arrived with super low action (to the point of mild fret buzz), and once I got it set up by a professional I couldn't be happier. It feels and sounds just like a jazz should, especially when it's in the passive tone setting. The active tone setting gives it a big volume boost and adds a little more of that active rumble. This is probably my favorite feature of the bass- my beef with the previous model American Deluxe was that you were stuck with a more modern, active tone. The newer electronics allow me to switch at my choosing, and is especially useful on situations when you need both old school and new school tones (cover band gigs, anyone?). Beware, though- there's a huge volume difference between the active and passive settings, so be careful if you need to switch mid song. There's also an ever so slight buzz in active mode, but I haven't found it to be too much of a problem.It's very well constructed- The inlays and fretboard binding are beautiful, and the neck is uber-comfortable and fast. It's pretty heavy- I don't have a scale, but it probably weighs about 11 pounds. Heavier than the American Standard models for sure.Overall, I'm very impressed with this bass- it's a perfect world of active and passive sounds, and it plays just like a higher-end Fender should. Sound guys always comment positively on my tone when I'm using this live. If you have the cash, it's hard to go wrong with this one!

I have been playing bass for the last 11 years and have played and recorded with several good basses. I typically play a Fender American Standard Precision Bass and was looking to add something more to my sound. I considered the G&L L2000, which is undeniably a great bass, I also considered a high end Ibanez and a MusicMan, also good basses. But after playing this Fender American Deluxe Jazz bass, the deal was sealed. The active and passive electronics give me flexibility and solid tones that I can dial up in seconds flat. I now have the distinctly different sound that I wanted apart from the P bass. In just a few weeks this Jazz bass has become my primary bass. The P bass has become my Drop D bass. I grab it between songs for the Drop D stuff and use the Jazz bass for the bulk of our current set. I run it through my Peavey Tour VB 2, pre-amped with my Fender 400, while the sound gets pumped out through my Peavey 2x15 and Fender 4x10 cabs. I can get deep bottom rumble, growl, slap, country and funk out of this bass with very little adjustment at the amp. As for playability, this bass was built for the stage. The feel is surprisingly light, balanced, and the neck is thin enough even for my small-ish hands. Stretching between frets is not a problem. Even my P bass makes me stretch a little too far for the frets, but not this Jazz bass. It is simply a joy to play. My hands and fingers are not worn out after a session or a show. You can play this bass for hours. I am not a wealthy musician and I am not a rep for any manufacturer. I'm not a Fender purist and I don't believe Fender makes the only good bass out there. There are many good basses, and if you have money falling out of your pockets you can buy them. But if you have to budget for a good bass like I do, the Fender American Deluxe Jazz Bass should be on your radar. Go play one and try it out. I don't think you will be disappointed with it.

Overall good selection for an easy to play, great sounding guitar, with great features. I really like the layout of the controls. Their easy to manipulate.The new pickups are very well mounted and quiet.I also like the fact that you can choose active or passive with the use of the toggle switch. Great fit between neck and body. Bridge is solid and well mounted. Pickups are inline and well adjusted. Controls are nicely mounted. The frettboard and frets are well finished. The only thing with any problem might be the nut. I found there was a slight buzz with the A open that seems to be in the finish of the nut. I checked the height and it was in specifications. The retainer (or holddown) for the A string is alittle sub-par. The electronics are very user friendly. I've had absolutely no noise from the pickups at all volumes. I think this is a great value for it's price range.

Overall considering price, quality and features I have to give this bass a 10. My critisizm of the binding and fretwork is my personal preference and me just being a bit picky. If it were stolen I would buy another one and I would recomend this bass to anyone looking for a beautiful, solid, quality bass guitar. You won't be disapointed. I own a few Fender basses. MIM, MIJ and now MIA.The onboard controls of the American Deluxe Jazz are amazing. Active/Passive switch is really nice. The builtin preamp offers a noticeable difference and is great. I put the Leo Quan bridge on all of my Fender basses because the originals are too thin and look cheap. I won't be replacing the bridge on this one because the HMV bridge is nice and beefy. The finish on the body was emaculate. The satin finish on the neck allows for very smooth movement. I was a little disapointed in the neck binding and frets. I actually prefer the feel of the neck binding and fretwork on my Geddy Lee signature. That's not to say the fretwork on the Amer. Dlx. is bad. It's very good. Just not as good (imo). I was expecting the rolled fretboard to be a little more "rolled" I guess. The neck is fast and solid and fits tight to the one piece body. You can feel the resonanace through your hands and body. Very well balanced and comfortable to play. It feels like it's part of you. The input jack is on the bottom edge instead of the front of the body like my other Jazz basses. Just a curious note on that. There's no doubt this is a very high quality instrument. The wood, bridge, tuners, controls and finish are top notch. The action was perfect (for me) right out of the box. I like a nice low action. The case is amazing. It looks heavy but it's suprisingly light. The case has nice big latches that lock down solid and secure. It comes with a really nice case.This is not a cheap instrument but for the price I would have liked the ends of the frets along the binding to feel a bit smoother. But if you compare this bass to some of the issues some of my friends have had with the necks and frets on their old Rickys along with the price of a Rick. I'm certain a Fender will out live a Rickenbacker and give you far fewer issues for the price.